The state Supreme Court rejected Gov. Jerry Brown's request Wednesday to grant immediate review of a ruling against his administration's plan for first-stage funding of California's high-speed rail project.

While refusing to bypass a lower court and take up the case itself, however, the high court issued an unusual, unanimous order to the state appellate court in Sacramento to "expedite its consideration of this matter," with written arguments due by Feb. 10.

In seeking direct state Supreme Court review, state officials said the normal years-long appellate process would threaten the project's financing regardless of the ultimate ruling. The Brown administration said it was satisfied with Wednesday's order.

"The state wanted the court to hear this case quickly," said state Finance Department spokesman H.D. Palmer. "Today, the Supreme Court effectively granted that request."

The $86 billion project is scheduled to carry trains at over 200 mph from San Francisco to the Los Angeles area by 2029. State voters approved the first phase of bond funding in 2008.

Kenny said the measure required the state to describe all sources of funds for the first 290 miles of the line, from Merced to the San Fernando Valley, before authorizing construction. The rail agency argued that its responsibility was limited to a shorter portion of the project, but Kenny barred the state from selling an initial $8.6 billion in project bonds until it rewrote its financing plan.

Stuart Flashman, a lawyer for Central Valley landowners who have challenged the project's financing and environmental impacts, said Brown's insistence on the need for immediate Supreme Court review was only one of several exaggerated claims the state has made in the case.